


look into your eyes (and the sky's the limit)

by oreocheesecakes



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: AU, Adorkable, Aged-Up Character(s), Ambassador Sokka (Avatar), Avatar Aang/Master Katara AU, Ba Sing Se, Dancing, Earth Kingdom (Avatar), F/M, Fluff, Hamilton AU, Hamilton References, I tried to be funny btw, In Universe AU, Kataang Valentine's Bash, Kataang Week, Let Sokka say fuck, Love at First Sight, Mentioned Hakoda, Mentioned Mai, Mentioned Suki, Mentioned Toph - Freeform, Minor Mai/Zuko, Minor Sokka/Suki, Oneshot, POV Katara (Avatar), Pining, Pining Katara, Racism, Romance, Water Tribe(s) (Avatar), Zuko is a cockblocker, a bit of crass language I guess
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-14
Updated: 2021-02-14
Packaged: 2021-03-15 03:46:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,867
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29429763
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/oreocheesecakes/pseuds/oreocheesecakes
Summary: “If it takes fighting a war for us to meet, it will have been worth it,” he said with a smile, his eyes never leaving hers.A fluffy in-universe Kataang AU where Aang saves the world without her, and they meet after the war instead. If you’ve ever wanted to read love at first sight Kataang, pining!Katara, and smack in the middle of charming and dorky!Aang, this might be up your alley. Inspired by the song “Helpless” from Hamilton. For the Kataang Valentine’s Bash 2021, with the prompt pair "air and water".
Relationships: Aang & Sokka (Avatar), Aang & Zuko (Avatar), Aang/Katara (Avatar), Katara & Sokka (Avatar), Katara & Zuko (Avatar)
Comments: 18
Kudos: 55
Collections: Kataang Valentine's Bash 2021





	look into your eyes (and the sky's the limit)

**Author's Note:**

> HAPPY VALENTINE'S YALL!!! 
> 
> Before you read this I must also plug the absolute cutest crossover art by tumblr user minkyforshort, which also served as an inspiration for this fic: https://minky-for-short.tumblr.com/post/161638294912/can-you-draw-aang-sokka-katara-and-toph-as. Aang’s 15 here, btw, and Katara’s 17.
> 
> This is by far the LONGEST oneshot I’ve written (it was originally supposed to be so short but it got away from me) and if you follow me on tumblr, you know it's also long overdue lol. Anyway!
> 
> I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender, or Hamilton.

Katara was not enjoying herself.

She’d only been back at the South for a week when they’d received word of a grand ball at the Earth Kingdom palace, celebrating the anniversary of the reclamation of Ba Sing Se. And while her father and brother were no strangers to these events as the Southern Chief and Ambassador, Katara was very well a fish out of water.

Sure, she’d attended some functions as a master waterbender during her stay at the North, but it was never anything of this magnitude. The glittering gold and jade green that colored the walls were far cries from all the icy whites and blue she was accustomed to all her life. Her gaze swept the room as she took in the hundreds of people gathered, all dressed to the nines in the latest fashion of their nation.

She herself wore a high-collared ocean blue dress with fur trimmings. She decided to wear her hair down for the occasion, but kept her signature tiny braids so she wouldn’t look _too_ different ( _hair loopies,_ she could already hear her brother saying). Patterned white and blue bracelets adorned both her arms, standing out against her brown skin. Animal hide boots just peeked out from underneath her long skirt, completing her unmistakably Water Tribe look.

It was one she wore with pride. However as the night went on, she was realizing that if the room were any marker, the Water Tribes were very few compared to the populations of the Earth Kingdom and Fire Nation. On top of that, the Southern Water Tribe was almost completely cut off from the world during the war, so their specific styles hadn’t been seen by the rest of the world in years. And how different they really were—the garb she wore seemed almost out of place alongside the silk robes and dainty shoes common to both larger nations. She’d even been getting looks from different people, some curious, some confused, and some just plain rude.

As if to drive the point home, a gaggle of giggling Earth Kingdom girls with powder-white faces passed by and gave her a cold once over, making her face burn. She tucked a loose piece of hair behind her ear self-consciously as she heard the click of a tongue, then more muffled giggles before they went on their merry way.

She was highly considering bending some of the nearby punch onto their faces when a familiar voice cut through her thoughts.

“Enjoying the party?” She stopped, sighing—it could only be one person.

“No,” she grumbled as she turn to face him. He stood out from the crowd just as much as she did, though he was clad in garments colored a shade darker than hers. “You shouldn’t have brought me here, Sokka. This isn’t my job.”

“Oh, lighten _up_ , little sister!” He elbowed her. “You deserve a break after all that training at the North Pole.”

“That’s why I went home! I wanted to spend some quiet time back home, not at some grand party where I don’t know anybody,” she said, gesturing wildly.

He scoffed. “You’re practically the princess of the South Pole. Think of it as political work.”

She smirked, seeing her opening. “Princess, huh? You introduced yourself as a prince, didn’t you?”

“It’s not _not_ true,” he huffed, crossing his arms.

“I’m sure they were _very_ impressed,” she said dryly.

“Of course she was!”

“Oh, so it’s a she, huh?” she said giddily. The joy she derived from teasing her brother was truly unparalleled.

“Well, how about you?” he goaded her, changing the topic. “Met any guys tonight?”

“A few guys have said ‘hey’ here and there,” she said nonchalantly. “They were … eh.”

“Wow, you truly have a way with words, Katara.”

She stuck her tongue out at him. “Listen, they’re boring. We barely make it past a few sentences.”

Sokka pursed his lips as he studied her. “Ah, maybe it’s because of that.” He pointed at her neck.

“Mom’s necklace?” she said skeptically.

“It’s a betrothal necklace, right?”

“In the _North_ ,” she stressed. “We all know it’s just a regular necklace in the South.”

“Ok, but we don’t know what they’re thinking. Here.” He reached over to tuck her necklace into her high collar. “Now you don’t give off ‘I’m engaged’ signals.”

“Hooray, just undeniably single now,” she deadpanned. “Look, it’s probably not that, they’re also just … not my type.”

“Oh? And what _is_ your type?” he asked, raising an eyebrow at her.

A blush crept into her cheeks. “I don’t know. Tall? Handsome? Thinks waterbending is great?” She shook her head. “Come to think of it, some of them get weird when we talk about waterbending.”

A look of understanding crossed her brother’s face. “Ah.”

“What?”

“Listen, Katara. I know you’re like the first waterbending master from the South in decades, and the first female one in the North, but …”

“Are you calling me a _show-off_?” she said indignantly.

“No!” He raised his hands up defensively. “I’m just saying that some men don’t like that. They got a lot of pride, and they get … intimidated when a woman is—”

She placed her hands on her hips. “Well good, because I don’t want them either. Just because I’m of marrying age doesn’t mean I—” She stopped, suddenly distracted as a tall, striking figure entered her field of vision.

He was clad in autumn-colored robes that weren’t quite as fancy as the red and green ones she’d seen earlier. He seemed to be around her age, and she couldn’t deny that he possessed a certain handsomeness—one that was boyish and yet mature at the same time. She looked on as he chatted animatedly to King Kuei himself, and another young man she assumed to be Fire Nation royalty from the royal hairpiece and his regal red and black outfit.

However, what intrigued her the most was the powder blue marking that arched over his bald head. It seemed to be a tattoo of some sort, and if she squinted, she could barely make out what seemed to be an arrow. It was a familiar symbol, but for some reason, she couldn’t for the life of her remember what it was at that moment. She continued to stare as the boy burst out laughing at the Fire Nation man, and Katara felt a little flutter in her chest as a small smile escaped her—his energy was infectious.

“What’s gotten into you?” Sokka followed his sister’s eyes suspiciously, then let out a loud groan. “Oh … oh no. Of all the guys, Katara!”

“Wh—What are you talking about?” she snapped, looking away defensively.

She heard the sound of his palm hitting his forehead, something she was unfortunately all too familiar with. “I know I kind of expected you to meet a guy tonight but really? So many possible men here and you decide to go for the _Fire Lord_?”

“The Fire Lord? Huh? What—no!” she sputtered. “It’s not him!”

“Aha, so you _were_ staring at someone!” he said accusingly, wagging a finger at her.

She watched tensely as Sokka thoughtfully stroked an imaginary beard on his chin. “The Earth King then?” Sokka cringed. “Really, Katara, you might wanna try—“

“What do you even _think_ of me?” she fumed.

“Wait.” Sokka’s eyes went wide as he threw a quick glance back at the trio across the room. He gasped, and Katara braced herself. “The _Avatar_?”

Sokka’s words hit her like a bucket of cold water. The _Avatar!_ Tui and La, how did she not recognize him?! “I—“ She cleared her throat, trying to compose herself. “The Avatar?” she asked as calmly as possible.

“Katara, you were practically _eye-fucking_ him across the room!” Sokka hissed, then shuddered. “Spirits, it creeps me out to say that but it’s true.”

“Shut _up_ , Sokka.” Her face was burning at this point, and it was taking all her self-control not to wrap her hands around his wolf tooth choker and throttle him.

He sighed, not seeming to hear her. “Well, I suppose he _is_ single.”

“Wait, he is?” The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them. “I mean, he’s a monk, right?

Sokka gave her a look that was in between a cringe and disbelief. “Oh, Katara, everyone makes a fuss about that! At any rate, I don’t think he’s … celibate. In fact, he’s practically the most eligible bachelor in the world, and trust me, it’s not due to a lack of choices.”

She deflated, looking down in embarrassment. Great, now she was just like all the dozens of fangirls who’d gotten starry-eyed over the Avatar. But there really was something about him that drew her like a magnet, and it definitely didn’t have anything to do with—

“Spirits, Katara, I think he’s _looking at you too._ ”

She snapped her head back up, and to her shock, he indeed was looking right at her, seemingly awestruck. Sapphire crashed into silver, and he gave her a small, timid smile that made her feel like she was going to spontaneously combust right there and then.

Beside her, she heard Sokka groan. “Okay, he’s definitely looking at you. Guess that means I’m going to have to introduce you now.” He sighed, holding out his arm. “Come on.”

She looped an arm around her brother’s, and together, they walked across the room. Her heart sounding like a stomping herd of buffalo yaks, and she tried to ignore it by focusing on tucking some more loose strands behind her ears. When this was met with little success, she turned to fixing the folds of her dress with her free hand, unfortunately rumpling it even more than before. She only had enough time left to curse under her breath before they’d gotten close enough for Sokka to start getting the Avatar’s attention.

“Avatar Aang!” Sokka greeted him, waving at the young monk.

The young man looked up, a wide smile spreading across his face as he saw who had called. “Ambassador Sokka! It’s good to see you again,” he said as they clasped each other’s forearms in traditional Water Tribe greeting. The contrast between the Avatar’s lighter skin and her brother’s brown tone drew her attention, and she realized with a start that there were arrows on his arms and hands as well. “Are you here with Chief Hakoda?”

“Nah.” Sokka shook his head. “Dad had to take care of some business back at home, you know, with the reconstruction and all.”

“I see. And you’re with ….” He looked curiously at her, making her heart rate grow even more erratic.

“Master Katara of the Southern Water Tribe,” she said, trying to sound confident. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

A questioning look flashed across his features. “Southern Water Tribe?” he asked, glancing at Sokka.

“My sister.” Katara thought she saw a hint of relief touch his eyes, but it was gone in an instant. “Dad sent us here in his stead.”

“Thank you for ending the war, Avatar Aang. We’re greatly indebted to you,” she said, bowing deeply.

He held her gaze for what seemed to be the longest moment of her life before leaning down to take her hand and press a kiss to it. “If it takes fighting a war for us to meet, it will have been worth it,” he said with a smile, his eyes never leaving hers.

There was a pregnant silence as she dumbfoundedly took in his eyes, his words, his hand, his lips on her hand. Her mouth hung slightly ajar, and she was pretty sure Sokka’s was doing the same too.

“All right, this is too much for me,” Sokka finally said, breaking the tension. He raised his hands and started to back away. “I’ll leave you to it.”

The pair watched as Sokka retreated, disappearing into the sea of party guests. Suddenly realizing that they were still in contact, Katara pulled her hand back and they both stood up straight, looking at anything but each other. After a few agonizing seconds, she attempted to start a conversation at the same time as he did, unfortunately, and the two got pushed back into an even more excruciating silence. Just when she couldn’t take it anymore, the Avatar cleared his throat.

“So, I uh, I guess I haven’t properly introduced myself yet,” he said, awkwardly rubbing his neck and putting on the absolute cutest half-smile Katara had ever seen. “I’m Aang. No need for titles.”

“Aang,” she tested it out. It felt surprisingly natural. “Just call me Katara, then.”

“Okay, Katara.” An unexpected thrill went through her as he said her name, and she bit back a smile. “It’s nice to finally meet you. I’ve met with Sokka and Chief Hakoda a couple of times, and I’ve heard so much about you!”

“Oh really,” she said, cringing. “What did they say?”

“Hey, nothing bad!” he assured her quickly. “For starters, they said you were a waterbender, and you’ve been training at the North Pole.”

“Oh.” That put her a bit more at ease. “That’s true.”

“Not only that,” he went on. “But Chief Hakoda said you were excellent and the first North-trained female master in centuries! Master Pakku taught me too so … I know how big a deal that is,” he added cheekily.

“It definitely wasn’t easy convincing him,” she chuckled, fully relaxing. This was going better than every other conversation she’d had that night. “But he’s asked me to help him train his waterbending students, so I guess we’re on good terms.”

“That’s incredible! I’d personally love to see you waterbend sometime.”

Katara blushed. “What? No, I can’t—you’re the Avatar! What’s my bending going to look like to _you_ of all people?”

He was unruffled. “Probably great. I can bend all four elements, but that doesn’t mean I’m the absolute best at them all. You can ask Toph.” He winced.

The waterbender laughed. Toph Beifong was collectively known as the greatest earthbender of all time, partly due to objective acknowledgement of her talents, and partly due to her constant self-declaration of it. “I’ll be sure to do that. Is she here tonight?”

“Nah, she’s busy with her own stuff these days. She’s found other students to yell at instead of me,” he said dryly.

“Good for you,” she said, grinning. “Anyway, I’d love to see you airbend sometime, too. I’ve never seen airbending before!”

Aang perked up immediately, looking excited as he reached into the folds of his robes. “Oh really?! Well, check this out!” He clasped his hands together for a second before parting them with a wicked grin.

Katara blinked. A couple of marbles were spinning around midair in between the Avatar’s palms. Aang looked at her eagerly, and she quickly tried to rearrange her confused shock into a (hopefully) impressed look.

“That’s uh—that’s great!” she said, and much to her relief, he didn’t seem to notice her hesitation.

“Right! This is my favorite trick,” he said proudly, before bringing his hands together again and returning the marbles to his pocket.

 _He’s a dork,_ she decided. An unexpected burst of affection swelled in her chest at the thought, and she decided she liked that about him.

“I’ve got another trick to show you,” he said, pulling her out of her thoughts. Katara could have sworn there was an almost mischievous glint in his eye as he said that.

He looked pointedly at a nearby Earth Kingdom general wearing a cape, and she watched as he did several deft twisting motions with his left wrist. All of a sudden, a gush of wind threw the general’s cape up, flipping it over and consequently covering his face.

The pair exploded in a fit of giggles as their victim threw the cape off his face angrily, revealing a very red and livid face. He started cursing as he angrily searched for a suspect.

“Uh-oh.” Aang said, ducking his head. “We better get out of sight.” He paused for a moment, calculating.

“How—“

“Just take my hand.”

She looked at him like he was crazy, but his face told her he was dead serious. All things considered, trusting him did seem to be her best option at the moment. “Okay.”

The moment her hand was in his, he spun her around skillfully into his arms with one turn. She looked up at him incredulously. “Are we going to _dance_?”

“Oh no, we’re going to be doing some bending practice.” He grinned impishly, placing his free hand on her shoulder. She gulped.

“Just follow my lead, Master Katara.”

The tinkling of the _bianqing_ echoed throughout the room to signal the transition of music, and she decided Aang must have been familiar with the piece, because they took off at the same time the erhu started with its first note.

He led her through the dance floor with utmost grace, blending the both of them seamlessly into the crowd. If Katara didn’t know any better, she would have thought they really were just dancing. But observing closely, she had never seen any dance quite like whatever Aang was doing—the spiraling movements, the ability to turn himself (and her) to a different direction at a moment’s notice. They might as well have been leaves in the wind.

So _this_ was airbending, she thought.

However, as their little “dance” went on, she started to notice a hint of familiarity to their motions—the way he would alternate between drawing her towards him and holding her at arm’s length, the way the weight transferred back and forth between the two of them—unmistakably, there was also an ebb and flow to his breeze, a push and pull.

“Waterbending,” she breathed, low enough that he didn’t hear her. She’d read about how airbenders just trusted the air to let it carry them but she’d never realized how similar it could be to her element’s constant shift of energy. That is, until this display.

A deft spin pulled her out of her thoughts, and before she could process what was happening, she found herself mere inches away from his face. Argentine eyes took up her entire vision, and she could only hear their ragged breaths and beating hearts. Agonizingly slowly, the distance between them started to close, but it wasn’t until she felt his warm breath on her lips did she realize just how _close_ they were.

“So,” she said, ducking her head in a panic and suddenly taking interest in the orchestra playing at the end of the ballroom. The music had quieted to a soft melody, and she fixed her gaze on the bamboo flute producing it. Her cheeks burned both at their almost-encounter, and she prayed to the spirits that her complexion was enough to hide it. “Flight and evasion. Very airbender.”

The Avatar blinked, then shook his head as if coming out of a trance. “You know for someone who says she’s never seen airbending, you sure seem to know a lot about it.” He lightly swayed them to the music, just enough to blend in without actually changing position.

She scoffed. “You’re the talk of the Four Nations, you know. Plus, Master Pakku told me that learning the bending styles of the other nations would help me greatly, so I read up at the North’s libraries while I was training there.”

“From firsthand experience, I can tell you it does help greatly.” He paused for a moment. “On that note, I’m curious if you’ve read anything about the Avatar.”

She shrugged. “Sure. Comes with the territory of the four elements.”

“So, how have I fared?” he probed playfully. “Living up to your textbook expectations?”

“Well for one, I didn’t expect the Avatar would be such an incurable prankster.”

She had to bite back a giggle as her partner did his best to feign offense. “Me? I’m just a simple monk,” he said innocently.

She laughed in earnest this time. “Could have fooled me. Do you always charm girls by kissing their hands and whisking them away to dance?”

“I—“ He stopped swaying. “You think I’m charming?”

Katara flushed. “I—“ She swallowed. “Um … sorry.”

“What? No, why are you apologizing?”

“Sorry, Aang, can we just drop this?”

“If it makes you feel better, I—I think you’re beautiful.” Katara froze, and the Avatar averted his gaze. “And um, to answer your question, no, this isn’t a regular thing.”

Katara’s world completely stopped. Did … Did the _Avatar—_ did _Aang_ just … what did that _mean?_

“Aang! There you are.” The two immediately jumped apart at the sound. Katara turned in its direction, and her panicked mind picked up various disjointed information about the approaching figure. Regal crimson robes, a golden headpiece, silky black hair, a scar … _Sacred spirits_ , she realized with a start. “I’ve been loo—” The Fire Lord’s golden eyes flitted between their two flushed faces. “Sorry, am I interrupting something?”

Katara desperately willed Aang to earthbend the ground to swallow them whole, but to her dismay, he had other plans. “No, nothing at all,” he said lightly, plastering an easy look onto his face. “Zuko, this is Master Katara of the Southern Water Tribe. Katara, meet his fieriness himself, Fire Lord Zuko.”

Zuko ignored the last part. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Master Katara.” He touched a fist to his palm and bowed to her, and Katara returned the gesture graciously.

“The pleasure’s all mine, your honor.” Something in Zuko’s expression shifted, and to her even greater confusion, Aang snickered next to her. She decided she’d ask about it … some other time.

“Now, what was it you were saying, Sifu Hotman?” Aang asked, a grin still playing on his mouth.

Katara found it harder to stifle laughter as the Fire Lord scowled, making no effort to hide his annoyance at the nickname. “I’ve just gotten word about the New Ozai Society causing unrest back in Caldera City. I need to get back as soon as possible, and I wanted to ask if you could come with me.”

A sinking feeling came over her at the rueful look Aang shot her. He took a deep breath. “Of course. Let’s take Appa so it’s quicker.”

Zuko nodded. “Thank you, Aang. I’ll just take a bit to look for Mai, then we’ll meet you by Appa.” He looked over at her, bowing once more. “I apologize for the abruptness of this. But it was nice meeting you, Master Katara.”

She bowed back. “Same to you, Fire Lord Zuko.”

She watched numbly as the Fire Lord left. Well, what did she expect? He was the Avatar, for spirits’ sake! It was just her luck that she had to start falling for him, of all people. How did she ever think— _why_ did she ever think something was possible?

And it’s not like she was sure he liked her back? Sure, he called her beautiful, but that could have meant nothing. Regardless, it was just so damn frustrating because something was _there_ , and they were being pulled apart before they had a chance to make sense of it.

“Katara?” He said her name timidly. She turned to look at him. His silver eyes, which had been so light and playful earlier, were filled with sadness. “I—“

“You need to go.” Aang winced, and Katara felt a pang of regret—her words might have ended up sounding much icier than expected. “Aang, it’s not your fault. Keeping peace is the Avatar’s duty.”

He gave a small sigh. “Yes, it is. But that’s not what I was going to say.”

She raised her eyebrows. “Oh. What was it then?”

“I wanted to tell you … I had fun tonight,” he said with a shy smile, easily melting her defenses once more. Spirits, what was with this boy? “I really enjoyed talking to you. And dancing with you.”

“I did too.” She hesitated. _Nothing to lose,_ she told herself. “I … really wish we had more time.” She just _knew_ she was blushing, but she had to try.

“Me too.” She was desperately racking her brain for something to say next, when Aang suddenly perked up.

“Could I write you?” Katara looked up, surprised. “I could send you a hawk once I get to the Fire Nation. And you can send me a letter back on the same hawk—it’d know where to find me. And I could visit you in the South Pole as soon as I can! If you want,” he added quickly.

Her initial shock soon dissipated and was replaced by warmth at his unabashed enthusiasm. He _did_ like her. He was willing to try, and it was going to be hard, but he wanted to make it work.

And truthfully, so did she.

“Sounds perfect,” she told him.

Affection swelled in her as she watched his gray eyes brighten at her response. She listened as he excitedly rattle off a seemingly never-ending list of things they could do, ranging from something as mundane as trying out the local food to a seemingly surreal cloudbending trip _(“We can take Appa!” “Okay, who is Appa?” “He’s my best friend.” “That we can ride on?” “Sure. He’s a flying bison.” “. . . oh. Neat!”)_

There was really something about Aang that she couldn’t quite place. Maybe it was his surprisingly troublemaker energy, or his catching enthusiasm. Maybe it was the way his native element just exuded from him in every way, and how easily it worked with hers. Or maybe, it was the way looking into his eyes was all it took for her to believe that cloudbending really was a thing they could do, despite her never having heard of it in her experience as a master waterbender. After all, sky seemed to be the limit with this airbender.

But even if she wasn’t yet sure _what_ it was, she couldn’t be happier to know that they were going to have a chance to find out.

“… or you could show me around your village, and we could skate on some ice and I don’t know if this sounds weird but … will you go penguin sledding with me?”

She blinked. Penguin sledding. It was honestly one of the last things she ever thought she’d be doing on a date, and the whole thing was just so … unpredictable. And fun. And free. So … _Aang._

“Of course,” she said, her face breaking into a smile.

He beamed at her. “Great! It’s a date!” He immediately blushed when he realized what he had just said. “I—I mean, the date, like you know, the fruit … not …”

That was it. He was just so darn adorable with his attempt to cover up that she couldn’t help but lean over to give him a kiss on the cheek. “It’s a date,” she assured him, watching with much enjoyment as Aang, who was scarlet by this time with his jaw slack, touched the spot where her lips had been.

“What, gotta catch your breath, airbender?” she asked teasingly.

“I—I—um,” he stammered.

Katara shoved his arm lightly. “Get going, Avatar, the world needs you. But I’ll be expecting the hawk.”

“Airbender’s honor,” he said, giving her one last dopey smile before he turned on his heel and walked away. He seemed to navigate the crowd with a new spring in his step, just barely touching the ground. Clearly, walking on air was a literal thing for him, she thought with a chuckle.

“OKAY, I SAW THAT!” a voice interrupted her thoughts with a screech. She turned to see none other than Sokka aggressively making his way to her. “OOGIES CENTRAL, little sister. OO—”

“Sokka, please.” She rolled her eyes. “You talk like I didn’t see you flirting with that Earth Kingdom girl the whole night.”

“That’s different! I’ve met Suki more than _once._ ” She raised an eyebrow at him, but he went on. “I can’t believe it. You … and the _Avatar_ …” he whispered tensely. “Oh man, wait ‘til Dad hears about this. You attend ONE party and you suddenly have a boy wrapped around your finger!”

“Well, didn’t you and Dad say I should meet more guys?” she said coolly. “And now the tribe can stop complaining about me not snagging myself some North Pole husband.”

“We didn’t mean the _AVATAR!_ ” he exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air.

“Why not?” She glared at him. “I’m sure everyone would love to meet him.”

Sokka scrunched his eyebrows. “Meet him?”

“Aang said he’d come over to visit the South Pole as soon as he can,” she said a-matter-of-factly. “We’re going penguin sledding.”

“He WHAT?” Sokka sputtered. “The Avatar? Is coming to the _South Pole_? And you’re going _penguin sledding_???”

“Yup. He asked me, and I said yes,” she said with a grin, already giddily imagining sledding down the South Pole’s slopes with him. She felt a rush run through her, making her feel light-headed with glee. In that moment, realized she might actually have half a mind to go over to the Fire Nation herself should the New Ozai Society start delaying their plans.

“Ohhh no. I know that look.” Sokka groaned. “Spirits, you’re … you’re _helpless_.”

Katara kept smiling. Maybe she was.

But so was he.

**Author's Note:**

> The whole point of a Helpless-inspired AU was a love at first sight AU basically, which was an interesting angle for me to write since Kataang is canonically a slow burn friends to lovers couple. Also: first move x pining Katara? Natural charmer x awkward bean Aang? I needed that in my life so I wrote it lol.
> 
> I also had so much fun peppering this with so many references (from both the actual Avatar shows and Hamilton!) If you wanna point out as much as you can I would love you for it.


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